No Cooking Tonight!

Had a great meal with family...so happy to have a night off.

Stay tuned for our School Year's Eve meal tomorrow night.  We have a tradition in our family to have a special meal the night before the kids start school.  Biggest started three weeks ago, so he already got his meal.  But Bigger starts on Wednesday so he got to choose the menu for tomorrow night.

WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 5-SEPTEMBER 11

MONDAY- Labor Day with Family


TUESDAY- SCHOOL YEAR'S EVE DINNER for Bigger: Chicken/Veggie Pillows, Rice Pilaf, Watermelon, Root Beer Floats


WEDNESDAY- Creamy Black Bean Enchiladas, Salad


THURSDAY- Pasta the Amalfi Way, String Beans with Shallots, Garlic Bread


FRIDAY- Eat Out!


SATURDAY- Birthday Party for bro-in-law and nephew


SOUPER SUNDAY- Nachos, Roasted Tomato Basil Soup




GROCERY LIST


bananas
romaine (salads, wraps)
mushrooms (veggie pillows)
watermelon
3 yellow onions (enchiladas and soup)
2 lemons (Amalfi pasta)
1 pkg haricots verts (string beans)
1 pkg chives (Amlfi pasta)--optional
1 large pkg basil (soup)
bag of avocados
shallots (string beans)
3 lbs plum tomatoes (soup)
Marcona almonds with rosemary (salads for lunch)
root beer (root beer floats)
8 oz cream cheese (veggie pillows)
good bread (garlic bread)
tortilla chips (nachos)
vanilla ice cream (root beer floats)
almond extract (running low)
garlic salt (running low)
1 box rice pilaf
small can chiles (enchiladas)
1 can black beans (enchiladas)
1 pkg angel hair (Amalfi pasta)
croutons (salads, soup)
28 oz. can plum tomatoes in juice (soup)
2 cans refrigerated crescent rolls (veggie pillows)
milk
16 oz sour cream (enchiladas, Amalfi pasta)
cream (amalfi pasta)



Items that you'll need that I already have:
Chicken/Veggie Pillows:
chicken
green onions
zucchini
bread crumbs
butter

Enchiladas:
flour tortillas
butter
flour
jack cheese

Amalfi Pasta:
Parmesan cheese

Soup:
garlic
crushed red pepper flakes

Other:
butter
olive oil
salt/pepper
garlic

Night Off

Happy Saturday!

Enjoyed a nice meal with my family, and my sis made two amazing berry pies.  What a great way to start off the long weekend.

Ashley Lisonbee's Chilled Gazpacho

Our week has been thrown off a little.  Tonight we ate the fajitas because we had pizza last night with Lover Boy's family.  We'll probably have the gazpacho on Sunday for "Souper Sunday," but I'll still post the recipe tonight.

My friend Ashley gave me this delicious recipe.  It is fresh, healthy, and cool for a hot summer day.  When I had a vegetable garden, I used my fresh veggies from the garden.
Lover Boy requests this meal a lot.  

3-4 large tomatoes

1 cucumber

1 red bell pepper

1/2 lime, juiced

1/2 c. olive oil

1 t. salt

1/2 t. cumin

dash red pepper

Chop up all ingredients and combine in blender; chill.  Serve with avocado and homemade whole wheat tortillas, garlic Naan, or Trader Joe's croutons.  It also tastes great warm.

Black Bean Fajitas

1 can black beans

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1 t. cumin

olive oil

2 bell peppers, I like orange and yellow

1 onion

1 c. fresh or frozen sweet corn

corn tortillas

flour tortillas (for kids)

Toppings: sour cream, avocado, cheese, cilantro, diced tomatoes

In a small pot, bring beans to a simmer and sprinkle in garlic salt and cumin.  While the beans simmer, slice up bell peppers and onion into long slices.  Heat up 1 T. olive oil in a large pan on high.  Add all vegetables to hot oil and sprinkle on salt and pepper.  Saute until cooked through and grilled around edges.  Remove from heat.  Fill tortillas with black beans and vegetables; top with yummy toppings.

**This is a meal that I grill up some chicken on the George Forman for Lover Boy and Biggest

Copy Cat of CPK's BBQ Chicken Salad

I love everything from California Pizza Kitchen!

You can make this salad as simple or complicated as you like.  I took the recipe off the food.com website.  I usually just use a good store-bought ranch dressing.  That saves a lot of time.  Also, if I make the chicken for Lover Boy and the kids, I just cook it in the George Forman and slather on BBQ sauce.  I don't normally add the other spices.  Usually I substitute avocado for the chicken (that's how I order it when I go to California Pizza Kitchen).  Another time saver--crush up tortilla chips (not as delicious, but easier) instead of frying up tortilla strips.

FRIED TORTILLA STRIPS

• vegetable oil, for deep-frying
• 12 corn tortillas, cut 1/4-inch strips

GARDEN HERB RANCH DRESSING

• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon cold water
• 3/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 8 tablespoons sour cream
• 1/2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 tablespoon thinly-sliced scallion top, and whites
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh Italian parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh dill
• 1/4 teaspoon minced dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon minced fresh basil

GRILLED GARLIC BBQ CHICKEN

• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (5 oz ea)
• 1/4 cup good-quality sweet-&-spicy barbecue sauce

SALAD

• 1/2 head iceberg lettuce (cored, rinsed and dried and cut into thin 1/8" strips)
• 1/2 head romaine lettuce leaf (separated, trimmed, rinsed, dried, and cut thin strips)
• 12 large fresh basil leaves, cut 1/8-inch strips
• 1 lb jicama, cut 1/4-inch by 1/4-inch by 3/4-inch strips
• 2 cups shredded monterey jack cheese
• 1 cup canned black bean, rinsed drained
• 1 cup canned sweet white corn kernels, drained
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 lbs fresh ripe tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch dices
• 1/2 cup good-quality sweet-&-spicy barbecue sauce

Directions:

1. 1
   To Make the Fried Tortilla Strips: In a deep, heavy frying pan, heat several inches of vegetable oil to a temperature of 375 degrees. Working in batches if necessary to prevent overcrowding, carefully add the tortilla strips to the hot oil, submerging them with a metal skimmer or slotted spoon. Fry the tortilla strips until evenly golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Carefully lift them out with the skimmer or slotted spoon and transfer them to paper towels to drain and cool. Set aside, uncovered.
2. 2
   To Make the Garden Herb Ranch Dressing: In a mixing bowl, use a fork to stir together the mustard and cold water, forming a paste. Set aside for 10 minutes. Add the remaining dressing ingredients to the bowl and, using a handheld electric mixer at low speed or a whisk, blend together just until smooth, taking care not to incorporate too much air into the dressing. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
3. 3
   To Make the Grilled Garlic and BBQ Chicken: Preheat a stovetop grill or the broiler. In a mixing bowl, stir together the olive oil, garlic, soy sauce, and salt. Turn the chicken breasts in this marinade and leave to marinate at room temperature for about 15 minutes. Grill or broil the chicken breasts until cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes per side. Chill thoroughly in the refrigerator. Cut the chicken breasts into 3/4-inch cubes and, in a bowl, toss with the barbecue sauce to coat well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
4. 4
   To Make the Salad: In a large mixing bowl, toss together the lettuces, basil, jicama, Monterey Jack cheese, beans, corn, cilantro, dressing, and half of the Fried Tortilla Strips. Transfer the salads to chilled serving plates. Surround each salad with diced tomatoes and the remaining Fried Tortilla Strips. Top each salad with chunks of Grilled Garlic BBQ Chicken and drizzle the chicken with the barbecue sauce. Garnish with the scallion.

Read more: http://www.food.com/recipe/california-pizza-kitchens-bbq-chicken-salad-121582#ixzz1Wj2uk7EZ

BUSY

I had a busy day all day.  Tonight, Biggest had soccer practice and then I headed straight from there to an activity for Church.  I barely had time to eat dinner.  We ate leftovers from last night.

I'll post the BBQ Salad recipe tomorrow.

Heading to bed,